GCCA India releases Report Showcasing Benefits of Blended Cement

It aims to tackle misapprehensions about the use of blended cement and accelerate its adoption across industries and infrastructure procurement.

Mumbai, 25^thApril 2022: Global Cement & Concrete Association (GCCA) India released a report ‘Blended Cement – Green, Durable & Sustainable’ highlighting the advantages of different types of blended cement over Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC). The report was released by Mr. Anil Agrawal, Additional Secretary Department for Promotion of Industry, and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Ministry of Commerce & Industry, Government of India, at an online event hosted by the India chapter of the Global Cement & Concrete Association. The report is available at https://gccassociation.org/about-us/gcca-india/

Mr. Anil Agrawal also called upon industries across sectors to work on becoming Carbon Neutral by 2070 following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s address during COP26 at Glasgow. “Blended Cement is the top priority and will play a key role in decarbonizing the infrastructure segment. I am happy to see that the global cement and concrete industry has taken the lead, and they have come up with a roadmap now Indian cement sector is developing an India specific detailed roadmap for the cement and concrete industry to achieve the net-zero CO2 concrete by 2050 in a time-bound manner,” said Mr. Anil Agrawal praising the efforts taken by the Indian cement industry.

Mr. Parth Jindal, MD of JSW Cement, and the Chair of GCCA India , during the event said that “the Indian Cement Industry is poised to grow at 8 to 10% per annum by supporting the government’s vision, Housing for All and to make India infrastructure ready. By using sustainable materials to achieve the government’s development goals, our country has an opportunity to lead the way when it comes to reducing carbon dioxide emissions in the cement industry and thereby become a global sustainability champion.”

Mr. Mahendra Singhi, MD and CEO, Dalmia Cement (Bharat) Limited who was a project sponsor for this report, stressed on the need to identify the cement sector as a possible to abate sector while highlighting the importance of blended cement in decarbonizing the economy. Dr. Andrew Minson, Director of Concrete & Sustainable Construction – GCCA Global shared the Net Zero Concrete roadmap (global) on behalf of Mr. Thomas Guillot – Chief Executive GCCA.

The report highlights shared by Dr. Arvind Bodhankar, Executive Director – ESG & Chief Risk Officer – Dalmia Bharat Limited and followed by the panel discussion. It included some of the most renowned names from the Indian industries and research institutes – Mr. Sanjay Kumar, Chief Materials Manager, Indian Railways; Dr. Bibekananda Mohapatra, Director General, NCCBM; Dr. Manu Santhanam, Professor, IIT Madras, and Mr. Sanjay Seth, Senior Director, Sustainable Habitat, TERI. The discussion was moderated by Mr. Manoj Rustagi, EVP of Business Strategy & Capex Projects, Sustainability, and R&D – JSW Cement.

Cement contributes to about 7% of global anthropogenic CO2 emissions. Despite having the highest potential to reduce these economically and technically feasible emissions, factory-produced blended cement is still low, and people prefer site-based mixing of supplementary cementitious material which at times is not uniform and scientific. The utilization of blended cement becomes critical, as these types of cement are environment-friendly and more cost-effective to produce due to lesser input of clinker and energy.

The report is a unique collation of the relevant information about blended cement and its advantages. It highlights the performance improvement possible through this replacement, making blended cement the most attractive means to achieve sustainable infrastructure development. It also showcases the benefits of different blended types of cement over OPC based on hydration, microstructure and permeability, rheology and workability, strength development, shrinkage (chemical, autogenous, and drying) and cracks, leaching, alkali-aggregate reactivity, sulphate attack, reinforcement corrosion, long-term durability of construction and usage in preparation of high strength concrete.

GCCA India focuses on driving forward the fundamental sustainability work underway within the Indian cement sector, the second-largest cement producing industry and the most energy-efficient globally. GCCA India focuses on advancing sustainable construction while demonstrating sustainable industrial leadership in Indian cement and concrete manufacturing. It is actively working to enhance the cement and concrete industry’s contribution to significant global, social, and developmental challenges.

About GCCA India
Global Cement & Concrete Association (GCCA) India works with the Indian cement & concrete sector on Climate Change, Circular Economy, Health & Safety, SDGs, and Advocacy. It currently has thirteen member companies, aggregating to more than 65% of India’s cement production capacity. Sustainable development of the cement & concrete industry is at the very core of the GCCA’s work and has five pillars: health & safety, climate change & energy, social responsibility, environment & nature, and circular economy. The GCCA gathers and publishes data on the industry’s sustainability commitments, guidelines, and initiating research.

For media inquiries please contact:
Global Cement Concrete Association (GCCA) India
Kaustubh Phadke
India Head
kaustubh.phadke@gccassociation.org